The Complications of Leaving New York
by Floppy Katana
Summary: Newt was planning on leaving New York, but he didn't make it very far before the mystery of Gellert Grindelwald and Percival Graves caught up with him. (A prelude for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald because I just can't wait!)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey, people of FanFiction! If you're as excited as me for the new movie (set to be released Nov 16 in most countries) then I'm sure you're on the lookout for anything to fill the space until it's released. If that's the case (or even if it isn't), then I hope you'll enjoy this story, which starts off at the very end of the first movie. Happy reading!**

Tina stood on the quay, leaning casually against the rail. Far off in the hazy distance was the ship Newt had boarded not a few minutes prior. Smog billowed from the triple smokestacks, adding to the dark cloud of smoke that was already curling around the Statue of Liberty.

Tina forced herself to smile. She was sad that Newt was leaving, but she reminded herself that he had promised to come back when his book was finished. Even though the publication of his book would take weeks, even months, at least it was something to look forward to.

For now, she would go back to her job as an auror at MACUSA. Thanks to Newt's recommendation to President Picquery, Tina was no longer working in the run-down Wand Permit Office.

She was immeasurably grateful that Newt had been able to persuade Picquery to get her job back. Work at the Wand Permit Office had been so monotonous that she had taken to spying on the Second Salemers during her lunch breaks. Now that Mary Lou Barebone was dead and her church was destroyed, the Second Salemers had completely disbanded.

Tina felt a pang of guilt that they had been unable to save Credence. After losing her job to save him from her deranged adoptive mother, Mary Lou Barebone, she felt very attached to him. If only the MACUSA aurors had listened to them, the poor Obscurial might still be alive. Perhaps Newt could have managed to extract the Obscurus like he had done to the Sudanese girl.

Alas, Credence was dead and there was nothing Tina could do to change that.

Shaking her head in sadness, she turned her gaze back up at the ship.

Just as she did, a thunderous explosion shattered the air. Tina couldn't believe it; the explosion was coming from Newt's ship!

Almost instantaneously, Tina pulled back her sleeve to check her watch.

She tapped it once and the watch face turned into a smaller version of the magical exposure level clock in MACUSA Headquarters. Tina watched as the clock hand moved from _Low Threat_ to _High Alert_.

She twisted the adjustment knob on the side of the watch and the magical exposure clock shimmered away, leaving a pale green background in its place. These words were scrawled across it in purple ink:

 _Auror Teams A and B, report to the police boat immediately._

Immediately, she sprinted down the quay. When she reached the last boat, she nimbly leapt over the railing and pulled open the door to the cabin.

The steering room was much larger on the inside, thanks to an Undetectable Expansion Charm someone had placed on it. Aurors were Apparating left and right, wands already drawn.

"Take us in, Snibbet, quickly!" yelled an auror. "There's no doubt that that was a magical explosion."

A house elf seated in the bow snapped his fingers and the police boat lurched magically out of the harbor.

Tina walked over to the auror who had spoken.

"Goldstein, why would a Dark wizard target that ship?" he asked, looking out the window at the wake their boat was leaving.

"Newt Scamander was on that ship, Mr. Grimsditch," explained Tina.

"The magizoologist that helped you apprehend Grindelwald?" asked the auror, sneering as he spat out the Dark wizard's name.

Tina nodded. "It's very possible that some of Grindelwald's followers wanted revenge on him for capturing their leader."

Mr. Grimsditch's hard features became even more lined. It was common knowledge that he hated Grindelwald more than any other criminal. "Hopefully, this case will let us track down his followers and put them to death where they belong."

Tina tried to suppress the shudder that ran through her body at the mention of the death potion. The death sentence was her least favorite aspect of working at MACUSA. When she closed her eyes, she could see the bubble of silver potion closing around her.

She shook the thought off just as their police boat came alongside a group of floundering No-Majs. Aurors threw life preservers out at them, but they didn't take them on board. They had more important things to attend to. Plus, their goal was to apprehend the Dark wizards, not save No-Majs. American Wizards had learned long ago that No-Majs were best left alone, especially when they were in defensive situations.

With a call from their leader, Mr. Grimsditch, the aurors Disapparated, leaving the boat empty except for the house-elf.

Tina found herself in a small, empty cabin. The door was scratched in places and the wallpaper was flaking off of the walls. She placed the back of her hand on the door and she could feel a visceral heat through it.

Tina thrust open the door and charged into the hallway. All of the No-Majs that were able had fled to the lifeboats, so Tina kept her wand in her hand.

A violent conflagration of roaring flames was consuming the hall to Tina's right. As she watched, a massive dragon's head looked out of the inferno, chasing her back into a small crowd of aurors.

"Mercy Lewis!" cried Tina. "It's Fiendfyre!"

"Aguamenti!" yelled the aurors as a chimaera reared out of the fire, lunging towards them.

"It's no use," said Tina, her heart sinking. What if Newt was trapped somewhere behind the wall of Fiendfyre? What if he was already dead? And what of the helpless No-Majs trapped behind the fire?

"We need to get out of here!" yelled Mr. Grimsditch. "The ship is sinking and the Fiendfyre is spreading."

He turned on his heel to Disapparate, but nothing happened. "Someone's just put an anti-Apparation spell on the whole area!" he said despondently.

A thick cloud of smoke drifted down the hallway, thicker even than the smog of New York City. Tina cast a Bubblehead charm around her nose and mouth, but still her eyes stung from the smoke.

"Aurors!" yelled Mr. Grimsditch through a mouthful of ash. "I'm ordering you to get out of here! Regroup at the boat!"

"Grimsditch," said Tina, dodging a strand of Fiendfyre. "I can get through the Fiendfyre! I just need—"

"No, Goldstein!" the chief called as he ran up the stairs. "It's not worth it!"

But Tina wouldn't take no for an answer. She was reluctant to disregard orders when she had only just gotten her commission back. Even though she had only known Newt for a few days, she knew she couldn't let him die when there was even a vague possibility of saving him.

Once the last aurors had disappeared up the stairs, she yelled, "Accio dragon hide suit!"

When the suit fell at last to her feet, Tina clambered into it and charged into the fire. The walls were completely incinerated in the first room she checked. Even the metal hull had been burnt through, and water had started flowing into the ship.

Hastily, Tina rushed into the next room. This, too, was so badly burned that nothing had survived. With even more desperation, Tina hurried into the next room, which was completely submerged.

And there, floating in the water, was Newt's case. Somehow it had survived the fire. Tina looked around desperately for Newt, but he was nowhere to be seen.

Even in the water, the Fiendfyre burned fiercely. Tina felt the flames charring the dragon hide suit, and knew that it would not last much longer. After taking one last look around, she grabbed the handle of the case and swam through the window. The least thing she could do to honor Newt's memory would be to take care of his creatures.

The bow of the passenger ship pointed down to the seafloor as her compartments filled with water. As Tina looked back at the sinking ship, she cursed whoever it was that had cast the Fiendfyre that had cost the lives of so many people.

 **A/N: If you like this story, please review and leave feedback. My writing gets better if I know what to change. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

"Acendio!"

Holding tight to Newt's case, Tina shot upward through the water. As soon as her head broke the surface, she peeled off the scorched dragon hide suit and stuffed it inside the suitcase. If anyone saw her now, they would think she was like any other survivor.

The MACUSA police boat came to a stop next to her and a young auror helped her aboard. As the house-elf steered the boat back to the harbor, the auror who had helped her out of the water brought her to Mr. Grimsditch.

He was stern and stoic, even more so now than before.

"Goldstein," he said, his voice dangerous. "You disobeyed my direct orders by staying behind. Need I remind you that such an action is punishable by dismissal from the auror ranks?"

Tina lowered her gaze. "Yes, sir," she mumbled, "but—"

"And that your reinstatement was only accepted after much persuasion?"

"Yes—"

"Goldstein, I like you," he said bluntly, "but I am not prepared to vouch for you in front of the Wizengamot. For both of our sakes, I'll keep this off the official record. But if you so much as put a toe out of line...," he glared at her darkly. "Now get out of my sight before I change my mind."

Still holding Newt's soaked case, she Disapparated.

She rematerialized just inside the door to her apartment. As Tina hung her coat on the rack, she realized that the other hooks were empty. If it was even possible, her heart sank even more. Now she would have to confront her misery without the company of her sister.

Tina set the case on the floor and collapsed onto the sofa, completely exhausted.

Newt was dead. Hundreds of No-Majs had died. She had nearly been sacked. Grindelwald's fanatics were on the rampage. Overall, it had not been a good day.

For the first time since her parents had died of Dragon Pox, Tina felt like crying.

She was just about to succumb to her tears when she heard a knock.

She moved over to the door and swung it open, but there was no one standing on the other side. Thinking nothing of it, Tina returned to the sofa.

Then it came again, and Tina realized it was coming from somewhere below her.

She took Newt's case and turned it on its side on the table in front of her. Who (or what) had knocked?

Cautiously, she flipped open the two latches and lifted the lid.

And there staring up at her was a little boy, weak-looking and pale. Behind him on the ladder was an ashen-faced girl, and behind her two disoriented adults. There was no sign of Newt.

Very confused, and slightly hopeful, Tina helped them out of the case.

"Who are you?" she asked.

None of them seemed inclined to answer. They were staring around dumbfounded at the apartment.

"They're No-Majs," came a voice from inside the case. "We were trapped behind the fire, so I had them climb into my case."

"Newt," said Tina, reaching into the case to help pull the battered magizoologist out. "How on Earth did you survive?"

Newt smiled vaguely before gesturing at his case fondly.

"It was my case that saved us. It's made of dragon hide, actually. There's a Disillusionment charm on it to make it look and feel like common leather. I learned long ago that leather just wasn't going to cut it in the field so I had this specially made."

"Hang on… dragon hide?" said Tina questioningly. "You don't seem the type to use the hide of a beast."

"I made sure it was humane and from a reliable source," he said defensively. "The dragon whose hide was used in this case died in the war on the Eastern Front."

He looked very uncomfortable and clumsily tried to change the subject. "We should, erm, probably Obliviate the muggles—sorry— No-Majs now."

"Let's bring them downstairs first," said Tina. "We wouldn't want them remembering this place."

"Good idea," agreed Newt, thankful that Tina hadn't pursued the matter of the dragon hide. He prodded the family towards the door.

They brought the No-Majs family downstairs and Obliviated them. After their memories had been thoroughly wiped, Newt and Tina pushed the No-Majs onto the street, where they blinked dumbly in the sunlight.

"They seemed very cooperative," remarked Tina as she unlocked the door to her flat.

"I had them Confunded," explained Newt. "I thought it was for the best that they didn't understand what they were seeing when I took them into the case."

"Here," said Tina, "take a seat. You look exhausted. I'll make some coffee."

Newt gratefully leaned back on the sofa and picked up his case. "Scourgify," he said, pointing his nicked wand at his case.

The scorch marks on his case vanished, reverting it to its usual brown coloring.

When his case was back to normal, Newt heard a little squeak coming from his shoulder. It was Pickett the Bowtruckle, his leaves and stem slightly wilted.

The little Bowtruckle let loose an angry barrage of squeaks, waving his hand-like appendages in anger.

"I'm so sorry you got wilted, Pickett," said Newt. "How about I get you some woodlice? Would that make you feel better?"

Pickett uncrossed his spindly arms and chirped his approval.

Newt reached inside his case and grabbed a few dried woodlice from a packet taped to the inside of the lid. Once he had secured the case again, Tina arrived back in the room.

"How are your creatures?" asked Tina, handing Newt a mug of coffee.

"The Bowtruckles are a touch wilted… Erumpent's not happy... Can't blame her, the enclosure's one giant puddle. A lot of water leaked in. The Grindylows are loving it, though. Margaret is so frightened of it that she climbed all the way to the top of the Mooncalves' hill! Most importantly, no one is hurt. Sorry... I've been rambling, haven't I?"

"That's fine," said Tina. "It's just good to hear that your creatures are safe."

"Have you found anything about the person who cast the Fiendfyre?" asked Newt.

"No," said Tina, "though I am almost certain that Grindelwald's followers were behind it."

Newt's brow furrowed. "Have you not been officially reinstated as an auror yet, then?"

"Er, no," said Tina, her gaze cast down. She didn't want Newt to think that she didn't appreciate all the trouble he had been through to get her commission back. If Newt knew she had disobeyed orders, he might think that she was reckless and undeserving of such an important job. "I have been reinstated, but… suffice it to say that Mr. Grimsditch is not very happy with me at the moment."

"That's unfortunate," said Newt empathetically. "I don't like Mr. Grimsditch. I almost preferred working with who we thought was Mr. Graves, even though he sent us to that horrid death chamber."

They both laughed at Newt's somewhat morbid humor. Now that she thought about it, Tina was tempted to agree.

"That reminds me… is there any news on the real Percival Graves?" asked Newt.

They both knew that Gellert Grindelwald had been using Polyjuice Potion to masquerade as Mr. Graves, and that meant that the real Graves was still alive. Or, at least, he had up until recently been.

"While I was still at the Wand Permit Office, a team of aurors raided the Graves residence, where Grindelwald had his hideout. There was no sign of the real Graves," replied Tina. "The search for him is still ongoing, but we've had no tangible results."

"A shame," said Newt. "I hope that you and the other aurors are able to rescue him… that is, of course, if he is still alive."

"I liked Graves… no, the real one, not Grindelgraves," said Tina. "He was nice… a bit soft spoken, but never that way when he was on a mission."

"Knowing Grindelwald's supporters, I would expect them to take their revenge on anyone who was involved in their leader's capture. Their attack on me might just be the start. Picquery, the real Graves, even _you_ could be the subject of attacks."

Just then, the door swung open and the ringing of laughter wafted through. Jacob and Queenie walked in, smiling broadly.

Queenie's smile quickly faded as she sensed the thoughts of both Newt and Tina. Even though Jacob lacked Legilimency, sensed the change in mood.

"Newt, Tina, what happened?" asked the No-Maj baker.

"Someone lit a Fiendfyre on Newt's ship," said Queenie, listening to Newt's thoughts. "Some of Grindelwald's followers. And Tina," she said, turning to her sister, "your boss…"

Tina ignored her sister and shrouded her thoughts with Occlumency. She often left her mind open to her sister, but she didn't want Queenie to let it slip that she had disobeyed orders when Newt was in the room. When there were Dark wizards and witches to be apprehended, there was no time to get caught up in petty emotional disputes.

"Oh, that's terrible," said Queenie, talking to no one in particular. "I think we all could use some comfort food."

 **A/N: Please review! Tell me what you liked (or didn't like) about this chapter.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Floppy Katana here! Crimes of Grindelwald is coming out in 68 days, my fellow Potterheads, and if that isn't a cause for celebration, I don't know what is. For that reason, I'm doing a double update. Enjoy!**

They had a quiet dinner of shepherd's pie, which Tina and Queenie prepared and cooked in a matter of minutes. The conversation mostly covered Jacob and his rediscovery of magic.

Apparently the Swooping Evil venom-infused rain only worked to get rid of bad memories, which left Jacob questioning his sanity when he found himself unsure of why the recollection of a certain black platypus, a shaggy grey ape, and a massive hippopotamus-rhino hybrid seemed so familiar. When Newt bumped into Jacob and exchanged the Occamy eggshell-filled suitcase with his own, he had experienced a flicker of memory about the blue-coated Magizoologist. And later, when Queenie had sidled into his bakery with such casualness, he remembered the Murtlap bite. In the past few days, with Queenie's help, he had remembered most of what he had forgotten about magic.

According to MACUSA, a No-Maj with knowledge of the Wizarding World was to be Obliviated immediately. Laws on No-Maj relations were, in Newt's own words, 'backwards' in America. Thus, the mere existence of a relationship between a No-Maj and a witch was illegal.

Apart from Newt, Queenie, and Tina, no one knew that Jacob had his memories of magic back. And they weren't going to tell anyone.

The conversation gradually shifted over to Newt, who spent most of dinner staring fixedly at the opposite wall and fiddling with his napkin.

"What will you do, Newt, now that your ship is somewhere submerged in the Upper Bay?" asked Jacob. "Will you stay here in New York?"

"Yes," said Newt with a downward glance. "Until the next ship due for England arrives."

"You're welcome to stay here until the next ship comes, honey," said Queenie welcomingly.

"Er, thank you," said Newt awkwardly. "Although if my presence is any sort of burden to you—"

"Hogwash!" said Tina. "I'm back up to an auror's salary, and I have you to thank for it. And it's a pleasure to have you anyway."

Newt gave a weak smile of gratitude. "I'm happy to have such kind people as friends."

After dinner, Queenie turned on the radio, which was broadcasting the Wizarding Wireless Network. Some American witch called Wendella Warbeck was singing a jazzy tune. Queenie seemed interested in the music, singing along at certain intervals, but Tina looked completely indifferent.

She perked up, however, when the song turned off and the Wizarding news started playing.

"This is breaking news, so hold onto your hats. Just a few minutes ago, Mr. Percival Graves, former head of the investigative team at MACUSA, Apparated into headquarters. As many of you may know, Mr. Graves was captured many weeks ago by the Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald. Though Grindelwald was apprehended several days ago, his hostage had not been found until today.

"Mr. Graves, who alleges that he was kept in the custody of Grindelwald's followers for several weeks, is in critical medical condition. He is currently being treated for his injuries in MACUSA's medical ward. Due to the serious nature of his injuries, Mr. Graves was unavailable to be interviewed.

"And now for some more of Wendella Warbeck's warming witchcraft!"

Tina switched the radio off with a scowl.

"Funny," said Tina distantly, "a team of aurors couldn't find him, so he had to free himself."

"Are you going to go over there now, Teen?" asked Queenie.

"Yes," replied Tina, waving her wand so that her coat and hat flew over from the coat rack. "Even though Grimsditch said he doesn't want to see me again today, this lead is too important to pass up."

"I'll join you, if I may," said Newt, getting to his feet. "After an assassination attempt on me killed so many No-Majs, I'd feel better to stay in the company of people who can Apparate away at the first sign of trouble." He nodded at Jacob for emphasis. "I'd hate for more innocent people to die on my behalf."

With that, they Disapparated.

They found themselves in a dark alley behind the MACUSA building. They hurried around to the front of the building.

They stepped through the magical door and came out into the vast hall. The enormous tapestry of President Picquery's scowling face glowered down at them as they entered.

Deep in the bowels of MACUSA's headquarters was the medical ward. Newt followed Tina down a narrow corridor that led out into a wide lobby. Witches and wizards bustled about all around them, some using their wands to levitate stretchers in front of them. Others waited in long queues to get their various medical needs looks after.

Newt couldn't help but look around with amazement at the massive lobby, but before he knew it he was falling behind. Tina was walking briskly towards an oaken desk set up next to a guard-flanked door.

"We're here to see Mr. Graves," said Tina, businesslike.

"Yer the firs' aurors ter turn up. I'll show ye fellers in," said the purple-clad mediwizard behind the desk.

He showed them through the door and into a long hallway. "Right in heah," said the cheery man, pointing to the nearest door. "He's still recoverin'… best not to exert him, if ye can."

Newt and Tina walked into the room, their eyes immediately darting to the supine man on the hospital bed. His eyes were staring blankly up at the ceiling. He limply turned his head toward the door upon their entrance.

"Goldstein," he croaked, "who's this?"

"This is Newt Scamander, Mr. Graves," said Tina. "He's the magizoologist that helped root out the fake Graves."

At this, Graves summoned the energy to sit up. He swung his legs over the side of the bed to get a closer look at the entrants.

"Scamander," said Graves slowly, his breaths shaky. "I've heard that name before. Some English guy from the war."

"You must be thinking of Theseus," explained Newt. "He's my elder brother."

"I must thank you, Mr. Scamander," said Graves weakly. "Without your and Ms. Goldstien's actions, I would still be in the captivity of Grindelwald's lackeys."

"We can talk later, Mr. Graves," said Tina, "we came to ask you if you remember where you were kept, or possibly if you recognized any of your captors."

Graves shook involuntarily. His eyes turned haunted and fearful.

"It's all right if you need more time to recover," said Tina quickly. "We can return tomorrow."

Graves shook his head. "I can't put this off," he sighed. "I've endured terrors in the past few weeks… unspeakable terrors. The Cruciatus Curse… he used it many times on me. Apart for using me for Polyjuice Potion, he tortured me for information about MACUSA."

"Hate to interrupt," said Newt, "but who is this 'he' you keep referring to?"

"Paladin Prince," answered Graves. "He's one of Grindelwald's most trusted followers. Prince was responsible for keeping me locked up. Often, he would show up in the dead of night and cast a Cruciatus Curse on me just for the fun of it."

Graves shuddered again. "I would tell you of all the misdeeds Prince practiced on me, but they're irrelevant. He doesn't know I'm free yet. We have to capture him."

"Can you tell us where you were kept?" asked Newt.

"No," said Graves. "But I can take you there."


	4. Chapter 4

Newt and Tina seized Graves' arm and they Disapparated.

They Apparated into a quiet, dark room. The shutters were drawn lopsidedly over the windows, throwing odd, grotesque shadows on the creaky, wooden floor.

Tina and Newt jumped in surprise as Graves fell to the floor. "Wands out; Prince may be about to make his evening check on my little prison," croaked Graves.

He stumbled a little and Tina just managed to keep him from falling. Tina noticed a long purple gash in Graves' arm.

"You need to go back to the medical ward," said Newt. "You can barely stand."

Graves' haunted eyes tried to argue, but Tina said, "I can't duel someone while holding you up."

He gave a disgruntled look, then Disapparated, leaving Newt and Tina in the silent room.

"Lumos," said Newt, the tip of his wand becoming bright. His other hand reached into his sleeve and pulled the Swooping Evil out. It hung like a yo-yo from his index finger. Having the brain-eating beast in his hand was very comforting.

Newt walked over to the shaded window and pulled back the shutters. Far below was a road lit by flickering streetlights.

"We're still in New York," Newt noticed.

"Clever of him," murmured Tina as she examined a sheet of paper ripped from a potion book, "to hide in the very city where no one can be found. We should apprehend him before he realizes that Graves is free."

Tina and Newt checked the other room and found it to be empty save for a small cupboard with a tiny hole in the bottom.

There was no time to dwell on that, though, for they heard a muffled thump from downstairs.

"He's awake," whispered Tina.

Silent as wraiths, they crept down the staircase. Newt wished he knew a spell to stop the stairs from creaking as he moved his foot to the next step. Although his gait came off as slightly duck-footed, it helped him to move silently. He had developed the strange shambling gait to avoid spooking any of his beasts.

Newt and Tina extinguished their lights with a quick "nox" when they came to the landing. From then on, they felt their way to the bottom of the stair.

A door stood in their way, and somewhere behind it was a Dark wizard that was not afraid to use the Unforgivable Curses.

They locked eyes and Tina nodded. Newt moved to the left of the door and Tina to the right.

"Alohomora," she whispered.

As soon as the door creaked open, a brilliant red curse shot by and blasted a gaping hole in the stairs behind them.

"Merlin's beard!" said Newt before shooting a stunner back into the room. "He's powerful!"

Tina and Newt cast a barrage of spells into the other room, hoping that one would hit Prince.

Suddenly, the spells coming from inside the room stopped.

"Lumos maxima!" yelled Tina, charging into the room.

The room was flooded with light, and they saw at once that it was empty. The window had been broken and the shutters had been ripped off.

Newt dashed over to the window and threw the Swooping Evil down into the street, where it pummeled into Prince's body and knocked him clean over. He and Tina leapt after the Swooping Evil.

"Petrificus totalus," said Tina, her wand pointed on the winded form. "Let's Apparate back to headquarters before any No-Majs see us."

They Apparated directly into the Auror Office. Mr. Grimsditch and his senior staff were clustered around a table, all of them looking thoroughly stressed.

As soon as they appeared, Grimsditch stood up, his chair flying backward. He was absolutely livid, his lined face even more etched than ever.

"Goldstein, explain yourself!" he spat.

"Grimsditch, contain yourself," came Graves' warning voice. "Ms. Goldstein and her friend have just caught Paladin Prince, my captor. If she had waited any longer to storm the residence, as you would have had her do, he would have discovered that I was missing. He would have immediately Disapparated and we would have lost him. And if a whole team of aurors had charged in, he would've heard them."

Now Graves looked maddened as he watched Grimsditch scowl darkly at Tina. "Any personal disputes you might have with Ms. Goldstein should be put to rest. Or if that level of common courtesy is beyond you, just leave the corps."

Grimsditch opened his mouth to protest, but Graves put his finger to his mouth like a woman shushing a child.

Grimsditch bowed his head slightly in submission. It became very clear to everyone in the room that Mr. Graves, though injured, was back in charge.

Mr. Graves stared down at his temporary replacement with distaste before turning back to Newt and Tina.

"Take Mr. Prince down to the cells. We'll begin the interrogation immediately."

"Yes, sir," said Tina, using her wand to lift Prince into the air.

She and Newt rode the elevator down to the same questioning room that they had been kept when they had been interrogated by Grindelgraves.

"Enervate," said Tina, cuffing the prisoner's hands and pushing him roughly into the chair.

He stirred, his head lolling on his shoulders. Newt hadn't gotten a chance to take a good look at Prince yet, and he now took the time to study him.

He was scarred, black-haired, and dressed in dark clothing that stretched down to his feet. His face bore many scars, and his dark brown eyes looked almost black.

"What?" he said, looking around at the grim interrogation room. "What am I doing at MACUSA?"

"Then you deny any knowledge of the past events?" said Graves.

"What events?" he asked, realizing his hands were bound. "There must have been some sort of mistake."

Suddenly, Tina pulled Newt aside.

"The Swooping Evil… could it have erased his memories?" she asked.

"Erm, I don't think so. All he did was fly into him to knock him over. I made sure that he didn't try to eat Prince's brains."

"Then he's making this up," said Tina. "He's just pretending that he doesn't know to try and throw us off the trail."

She turned back around to face the prisoner. "Do you deny participation of any events relating to the sinking of the No-Maj ship and attempted murder of Newt Scamander?"

"I would never side with Grindelwald. Is that what this is all about?"

Tina was growing more infuriated by the minute. "How do you explain your resistance, then?"

"You broke into my home! Of course I was inclined to defend myself."

"Don't listen to him," said Graves gravely. "I know his face; this is the man who tortured me relentlessly. This is the man whose terrible fiendishness caused me the agony you see me in now. This is the man that sided with Grindelwald to wreak havoc and war upon the world."

All the aurors were silent as they looked down at the sneering prisoner.

"I'd like to see you _prove_ it," snarled Prince.

Graves bent close to Prince and leered his disgust.

"Bring him to the cells and station a guard," he said, leaving the room. "Aurors, head back to your homes and get some sleep. I get the feeling we'll be needing much rest in the coming days."

 **A/N: Don't forget to post your thoughts in the review section!**


	5. Chapter 5

After feeding his creatures their evening meal, Newt climbed into the bed in the guest room. He sat up in bed, scratching out a few more lines about Ukranian Ironbellies in his manuscript. Working on his book didn't hold his attention for very long.

He put the book aside and set the inkwell on his bedside table. With a flick of his wand, the lamp went out.

He lay in silence for a long while, trying to fall asleep. But as the darkness of the room pervaded his vision, he couldn't help but ask himself the many questions that were swirling through his mind.

How did Graves escape from Prince's captivity? Why was Mr. Grimsditch so uncontrollably mad at Tina? Who was Paladin Prince? Was he really innocent, as he insisted? Or was he faking it so he could get free?

Newt rolled over and covered his head with a corner of his blanket. For now, there was nothing to do but get some sleep and wait until more information surfaced.

* * *

The next morning, Newt, Tina, and Queenie headed to the MACUSA building. Once they entered, Queenie took the elevator down to the Wand Permit Office. Newt and Tina walked into the Auror Office and stood with Auror Team A.

Mr. Graves, whose cursed arm had been bandaged and put in a sling, walked wearily towards them

"Mr. Graves, I've been meaning to ask you something. How did you escape?" asked Tina.

"When you captured Grindelwald, Prince transported me to what must have been his own house. He kept me in an impervious, magically locked cupboard. As you may know, I almost registered as an Animagus a number of years ago. After my promotion, I set aside my studies in favor of pursuing my job as an auror. Even though my official attempts at making an Animagus stopped, I to this day retain the ability to turn into a gecko. Using wandless magic, I cut a tiny hole in the magically charmed cupboard and slid out in gecko form. The rest should be self-explanatory.

"Your job today is to search Prince's residence for clues and to keep the No-Majs in line. Some of them might need Obliviating."

"Yes, sir," said the aurors.

"Ms. Goldstein, Mr. Scamander, I believe you two know where to go? Do a chain Apparation to Prince's apartment so they all know where to go."

All the aurors made a chain with their hands and reached out to Newt and Tina.

A second later they were back in Prince's house, wands drawn.

"You lot," said Grimsditch, pointing at Newt, Tina, and another auror, "stay up here and search the room while I take the rest of the aurors down."

"You'll get no complaints from me," said Tina under her breath.

As they moved into the other room, Newt said, "You really dislike him, don't you?"

"It's mutual. But it doesn't matter, anyway," said Tina. "Mr. Graves will be taking over as Department Head as soon as he's well enough."

She moved forward to investigate the new room.

It was very clean and orderly inside, almost immaculate, in fact. Tina pushed open a tall wardrobe and saw an orderly row of robes hanging inside. Lining the floor were several pairs of well-polished dress shoes. Without knowing what she was looking for, Tina checked inside the shoes and pockets of the robes. They were all empty.

Then, she stepped back and looked at the robes themselves. Upon closer scrutiny, she saw that some of the trailing fringes were stained with blood.

"Cruor vestigium," said Tina, pointing her wand at the trace of blood. Newt and the other auror watched as the blood seeped from the fabric and floated into the air. It twirled together like an Obscurus for a few seconds before it formed into the likeness of Mr. Graves.

"It seems as if our friend Paladin Prince knows more about this than he's letting on," said Newt.

Since there was nothing more to be found in the upper room, they headed downstairs to the bedroom and the kitchen alcove.

"We found Mr. Graves' wand," said a young auror. She was holding a silver wand that looked just like a larger version one of those fancy No-Maj fountain pens.

"Good work, Jenkins," said Tina. "What're they doing over there?"

Grimsditch and the other aurors were standing a circle, looking up at a small, silvery image of Graves writhing in pain. Grimsditch held a dark black wand in his hand, presumably Prince's.

"It's confirmed," he said, "Prince used the Cruciatus Curse on Graves."

* * *

"Madam Picquery, it is with great satisfaction that I pronounce this man, Paladin Leo Prince, guilty of the following transgressions: That he used an Unforgivable Curse on Mr. Percival Graves; that he did keep Mr. Graves captive; that in full knowledge of the felonious nature of his actions he started a Fiendfyre on the No-Maj ship _Plymouth_ ; and that he committed these infractions with the goal of avenging the capture of his master, Gellert Grindelwald."

Mr. Grimsditch looked over at his squad of aurors, then at Madam Picquery. They sat in the chairs in the Wizengamot meeting room, looking down at the cowed prisoner.

"Those in favor of giving him the death sentence," said Picquery.

All of the judges raised their hands.

"Then it's decided. He will be executed at ten o'clock tomorrow."

Suddenly the man in the central chair yelled out. "No! You can't do this to me! I promise, I'm not with Grindelwald! I swear it!"

"Take him away," said Picquery, looking down at Prince imperiously.

* * *

Later that evening, Newt, Tina, and Queenie sat at the table after finishing their dinner.

Newt seemed more head-in-the-clouds than usual. He kept staring up at the ceiling.

"What's on your mind, Newt," asked Tina, concerned.

"He's just—"

"I want to hear it from him, Queenie," interrupted Tina. "So what is it, Newt. What's bothering you?"

"It's just that, at the hearing today… at the end, I started to wonder if he really was with Grindelwald."

"What do you mean?" asked Tina.

"What if Prince was wrongly convicted, like we were? What if he is innocent?"

"I don't understand," said Tina. "There was a preponderance of evidence pointing to his guilt."

"That's exactly what I'm trying to get at," said Newt, his tone sharper than Tina had ever heard it. "I don't know much about investigative practices, but it seemed to me that everything was too easy, all the clues were right there. We barely had to scratch the surface to find what we needed to be sure that Mr. Prince was the culprit."

"Listen, if it makes you feel any better, we can go back to the apartment tomorrow and search for more clues."

"I would like that," said Newt.

"Don't you need a permit or something?" asked Queenie. "If so, you won't be able to get one tomorrow; I heard Graves telling Abernathy that he would be questioning Grindelwald at the same time as Prince's execution."

"That's thoughtful of you, Queenie," said Tina, "but there's no need to get an official search warrant as long as the space is still considered a crime scene."

"Well, I'm so glad you two could bring Grindelwald's closest supporter to justice, even if the sentence is a bit harsh," said Queenie sweetly.

"A bit harsh!" exclaimed Newt glumly. "A man is going to be executed tomorrow and we're not even certain he's Grindelwald's follower. I don't understand how MACUSA even functions when people are getting executed left and right."

"Well, that's rich, coming from a man whose country uses Dementors to suck people's happy memories out," said Tina sharply.

"I think," said Queenie loudly, standing up from her chair and putting a warning hand on Tina's shoulder, "that it's time for bed."

 **A/N: What did you think? Leave your thoughts in the reviews.**


	6. Chapter 6

Tina sat up in bed, a magical cookbook propped open in front of her. She looked at the pictures, but couldn't seem to be able to focus on the words.

For the first time, she was actually mad at Newt. They had been getting along harmoniously for several days, so what made today different?

"You don't understand, do you?"

Tina looked up from her book and saw that Queenie had entered the room.

"You were thinking awfully loud, you know," she said. "You were wondering why Newt is acting this way."

Tina moved her head slightly, not confirming or denying her sister's question.

"He sees himself in Prince. He sees you and him getting sent to the death cell, you descending into the potion. The only thing is… Prince doesn't have a Swooping Evil up his sleeve or a Bowtruckle in his pocket. There's no escape for him. Like an animal trying to escape a trap.

"He sees a beast in Prince, a beast that needs saving. In Newt's own thoughts, 'there is no monster that cannot be made tame.'"

"You think he'll try to free Prince if we don't find anything in the apartment?" asked Tina, shocked.

"No, good heavens, no!" said Queenie. "All I'm saying is that that's the reason that Newt is all on edge."

Tina returned her gaze to the cookbook, finding it much easier to concentrate now. "Sometimes, it's nice to have a Legilimens for a sister," she admitted.

At nine-thirty, Newt and Tina Apparated into Prince's apartment.

After checking the chimney, and finding it empty save for a lot of ash, Newt walked over to the sink to wash his hands. As the water gurgled down the drain, Tina and Newt both heard a strange rattling sound.

"It's coming from inside the drain," said Newt.

He pointed his wand at the faded metal of the drain and it magically unscrewed itself, leaving a gaping hole in the bottom of the sink.

"Accio," said Newt.

And two pieces of a pen-like wand shot out and zoomed into Newt's hand.

"It's the same wand from earlier!" said Newt, examining the wand. "Why didn't the aurors take it with them?"

"No, it's not the same wand," said Tina breathlessly, taking the wand pieces from Newt and holding them up to her eyes. "That was a visual facsimile, but it's not the same wand. This is Mr. Graves' wand. He told me a few months ago that it was hornbeam and Thunderbird feather, and this matches his description. That makes it one of the most loyal wand combinations possible."

"What do you mean?" asked Newt.

"I mean that, when an impostor tried to masquerade as Graves, he or she would have had much difficulty trying to use this wand. Thunderbird wands have been known to fire curses of their own accord, so Grindelwald's supporter couldn't use the real one. He or she would have needed a loyal and powerful wand that still looked like Graves' wand, so he or she had a lookalike wand made. The supporter had to get rid of it quickly, so he or she broke it and stuffed it down the drain to hide it away."

"Merlin's beard," said Newt as the pieces fell into place. "So the man we thought was Graves is actually Grindelwald's supporter! He's supposed to be interrogating him right now!"

"There's no time to lose!" yelled Tina urgently. She grabbed Newt's arm and Disapparated.

* * *

Since anti-Apparition charms were set up in the prison section of MACUSA, they had to Apparate into the entrance hall.

"Grindelwald's escaping!" Tina yelled to a group of aurors. "Follow us!"

As they sprinted for the stairs, Queenie appeared from around a corner.

Tina telepathically conveyed her plan as they sprinted down to the prison floor. The aurors barely had time to look around before a burst of electrical energy exploded inside their ranks.

"Get to cover!" cried Tina, pulling Newt behind a pillar.

From their position of relative safety, they could see Grindelwald and what appeared to be Graves shooting curses at the aurors. Grindelwald looked livid as he deflected curses left and right, like a cat swatting at a toy.

This gave Newt an idea.

"What're you doing?" yelled Tina as she shot a red spell at Grindelwald.

Newt was huddled over his case. "Come on out, Margaret!" he said.

All of the sudden, an enormous, blackish leopard burst out of the case and bounded over to Grindelwald and the fake Graves. The aurors dove out of sight as the Nundu barreled towards them.

Grindelwald tried to fire a curse at the gigantic beast, but it couldn't penetrate her thick hide.

Using her two massive front paws, the Nundu smashed the two Dark wizards' heads together. She stood on their bodies and gave a mighty roar.

"What in Morrigan's name is that?" said Tina as she stood up.

"Just a Nundu," replied Newt. "Come on, Margaret, back into the case."

The towering Nundu roared again, this time in annoyance rather than triumph.

"Come on," said Newt gently. "Sit!"

Grudgingly, the gigantic leopard sank down onto is back haunches.

"That's it," encouraged Newt. "Into the case."

Reluctanly, the Nundu slinked back into the case. When her tail vanished inside, Newt slammed the case shut and closed the latches.

"Quickly, Newt!" yelled Tina. "We have to save the real Graves!"

They both took off sprinting towards the death cell.

They rounded a corner and saw Queenie pleading with a burly guard.

"I'm sorry, Teen," said Queenie quickly, turning around. "He won't let me in."

Tina heard a distinct, "Oh, dear," as Newt took a deep breath, then approached the guard purposely.

"I am Theseus Scamander," he said in the closest approximation to his brother's haughty voice as he could muster. "I have special dispensation from Mr. Graves to see that the man who tried to kill my brother is put to death."

"I assure you that our executioners… hang on… did you say Theseus Scamander? The war hero?"

"Of course I did," said Newt, inwardly grimacing but puffing out his chest anyway.

The guard looked a trifle disappointed. "I expected you to be taller. You'll have to prove it to me that you're actually Theseus Scamander. I served under him in the war."

"Fifty-nine kills, ninety-eight woundings. I served on the Eastern Front in the fourth battalion. My favorite animal is the Crup and I was promoted to head auror of the Ministry of Magic on August 16th, 1921."

The guard looked impressed. "Welcome to America, Mr. Scamander, sir. You can bring one other person in, but I'm afraid that two guests is too many."

"Thank you," said Newt briskly as the guard opened the door. "Tina, you're with me."

They charged into the death cell and skidded to a stop as soon as they got inside. Paladin Prince was sitting on the levitating chair, which hovered just a few inches above the potion. His head was lolling to the side nonchalantly as he stared into the silvery potion.

"Stop!" yelled Tina. "Get him away from that potion. That's Percival Graves!"

The executioners looked at her as if she'd lost it.

"We're going to have to ask you to leave," said Bernadette, raising her new wand.

"No!" yelled Tina, "Save him, Newt! I'll handle them!"

Newt threw his case on the ground, flipped it open, and pointed his wand inside it. "Accio Fredbert!"

Amid the latticework of zooming red streams of magic, a fluttering green Billywig spiraled out. "Sting him," yelled Newt.

The Billywig whizzed by, but instead of going for Graves, it went for Bernadette the executioner. It stung her just as Tina's stunner caught her in the chest.

The Billywig venom took affect and the executioner started floating toward the ceiling.

"Come on," said Newt exasperatedly as he ducked from a Stunning spell. "Accio Sherbert."

Another Billywig zoomed out and this time shot toward Graves. Just as the soles of his shoes were burning away, it stung him in the calf.

Instantly, Graves' body lifted out of the chair. His body drifted up to the ceiling just as the last two pieces of magic that were concealing his identity fell away.

He had been aware of what he was doing, but powerless to stop it. Earlier, when Vinda Rosier and Grindelwald had been stopped by the aurors, the Imperius Curse that had been binding him broke off. He had tried to persuade the executioners that he was actually the real Graves, but they wouldn't have it.

Finally, the Polyjuice Potion wore off and his original appearance returned. He felt life flowing back into his limbs. He was himself again.

Newt and Tina looked up at the floating body high above. It was finally Mr. Graves again. Newt realized that, until now, he had never met the real Graves.

"Let's check to see if he's the real Graves, just to be sure," said Newt. He wasn't happy after being tricked twice. "Revelio."

The charm revealed nothing, so Newt was resigned to believe that the man floating high above him was the genuine Mr. Graves.

"Let's get him down," said Tina.

Newt suddenly became very interested in his shoes. "Erm, the antidote to Billywig stings is not readily available. He may have to, erm, float for a while, until the effects wear off, that is."

"Fortunately," said Tina, "we have the most advanced magical medical facility in the wizarding world right above us."

A team of mediwizards barged in and started tending to the stunned executioners. A pair of them brought the still-floating figures of Bernadette and Graves down to the ground and gave them the antidote.

As soon as Graves found his footing (and realized that the bottom of his shoes were burnt off) he walked over to Tina and Newt. He was still out of breath, and seemed very weak.

"You're getting a raise, Ms. Goldstein," he said gratefully, before passing out.

 **A/N: The next chapter will be the conclusion. It will also have a short omake at the end, which was written by my equally-obsessed friend.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: This is the last chapter! Thanks for sticking with this story to the end.**

After they left the chaotic death cell behind, Newt and Tina found themselves walking down the seemingly endless hallway in the dungeons of the MACUSA building.

"You owe me a lot of answers," said Tina. She was infinitely glad that she and Newt had sorted out their argument.

"Yes, I suppose I do," replied Newt after a while.

"First… how did you know all those things about your brother?"

"If you had a brother like Theseus, you would know it too. He's a touch boastful, my brother."

Tina could tell from his tone that Theseus was a lot more than a touch boastful. "And what about the Billywigs? Sherbert and Fredbert."

"Erm, my nephew named them."

"You don't have a nephew," Tina pointed out. "Unless Theseus was married."

It was very fleeting, but just for a second, Newt looked hurt, as if he was terribly pained by some unknown thought or memory. Soon the small smile was back, though still a bit subdued.

"Well, if you really must know…," he said, looking embarrassed. "I was in the Leaky Cauldron one night and I got a bit… tipsy. Suffice it to say that I was still a bit… out of it… when I christened them. Unfortunately, the names stuck."

Tina couldn't contain her laughter at the thought of Newt meandering tipsily through his case and naming the Billywigs Sherbert and Fredbert.

Newt found the laughter infectious and couldn't help but join in.

They were still laughing when they rounded a corner and found themselves right in front of a tall, burly man. Newt barely had time to breathe before he felt himself get crushed by the other man's grip. He faintly heard the clattering of light footsteps behind him.

Finally, the tall man broke the hug and stood back, dwarfing his younger brother.

"Newton Artemis Fido Scamander!" yelled the big man loudly. The hallways rang with his booming voice. "I've come all the way from England, thinking you were dead, and now I find you here laughing!"

Newt turned around as if to deflect the man's thunderous voice, and saw that Queenie had appeared. "Relax, Theseus," said Newt quietly. "I'm alive."

"You don't seem happy to see me," said Theseus cantankerously. "I would have thought that you would be excited to see your elder brother. I even went through the trouble of getting one of those long-distance portkeys to get over here. Well, aren't you going to introduce me to your friends?"

"This is Tina Goldstein and her sister Queenie," said Newt bitterly.

"Theseus Scamander," said the war hero proudly. "A pleasure to meet you both."

"It's nice to meet you," said Tina, extending her hand for a handshake. Newt looked at Theseus' extended hand and spotted the engagement ring on his ring finger.

Queenie couldn't help but sense an intense stream of thoughts coming from Newt as his eyes alighted on the thin strip of gold.

Queenie couldn't believe what she was hearing. Though he didn't show it on the outside, Newt was terribly hurt. How could anyone bring themselves to hurt the cinnamon roll that was Newt?

Queenie looked back at Theseus. Here was a real beast. None of the creatures in Newt's case could cause anyone as much harm as Theseus had caused Newt.

Queenie realized that the same beast was standing in front of her now with the same hand offering a handshake. But she didn't see a hand; it was a beast's claw.

"You gargoyle," spat Queenie. And she slapped him across the face before she turned on her heel and left.

* * *

"The Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald made an attempted escape today. He was aided by a European witch named Vinda Rosier. The investigative team has stated that Rosier used Polyjuice Potion to masquerade as Graves.

"In a scheduled interrogation session, Rosieraves passed Grindelwald a wand and they broke out of the cell. They were nearly out of the anti-Apparation zone when a ragtag team of aurors accosted them, lead by the newly-reinstated Porpentina Goldstein and the magizoologist Newton Scamander.

"The magizoologist released a Nundu, a dark leopard-like beast, and used it to stop the escapees. Later, the convicted criminal Paladin Prince was realized to be the genuine Mr. Graves, who was under the Imperius Curse. Graves was rescued from the death cell just in time and will likely spend several weeks recovering from this ordeal. As such, he was unavailable to comment.

"Now for more of Wendella Warbeck's new album."

* * *

Tina accompanied Newt down to the harbor again, just as they had done a week prior. People bustled about, climbing up the gangplanks and doing last-minute checks of baggage.

Theseus had offered Newt to accompany him back to England using the same Portkey, but he had declined, saying that he preferred Muggle transportation.

And, just as they had done a week ago, they stopped by one of the gangplanks to say their goodbyes. Only, this time, Newt was the one who needed cheering up.

"Newt," said Tina.

He turned around and tried to meet her gaze.

"I'm sorry your brother's marrying Leta Lestrange. I know you two were close."

"It's fine," insisted Newt. He seemed to be getting choked up. "We haven't spoken for years, not after…"

"Did she hurt you, too?" asked Tina empathetically.

"I hurt myself," said Newt, his eyes watering. "I was stupid; I set myself up to be hurt."

The ship's whistle went off distantly.

"Well," he said, trying to hold back his tears. "I'm truly sorry for involving you in this whole mess. I'd best be off."

He tried to leave but Tina caught him by the elbow.

"Newt," she said kindly but forcefully, "no matter how alone you feel, no matter what happens, remember your friends here in America. You'll always be welcome here, and we'll always be your friends."

He gave a weak but appreciative smile.

"Goodbye, Tina," said Newt, with a hint of hope in his voice. "I have a feeling that we'll be seeing each other much sooner than we both think."

 **A/N: Thank you for sticking with this story! It has been my hope that this story has helped to pass the time before the release of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. If not, then check out my next story, "The Crimes of Dumbledore." Let me know about what you're excited for in the next movie.**

 **Also, if you have any story prompts for me, write 'em down in the reviews section and I'll see what I can do. Most of my writer's block comes from not having prompts.**

 **Just for a little bit of fun, I had my friend write this omake. Please note that I left grammatical errors in there to contribute to the nonsensical style of this omake.**

 **Omake prompt: The more keen of you watchers of the first movie noticed that Frank the Thunderbird was headed east instead of west when he was supposedly going to Arizona. Explain what was going on.**

Newt leaned against the rail watching the New York coastline become fainter till it eventually disappeared. He had made some good friends back in New York but he had to get back to England and finish his book. Suddenly, a large shadow passed over and Frank the Thunderbird landed on the deck.

"Frank?" Newt said confused, "What are you doing here. I thought you were going to Arizona."

"Squawk, squawk, Blaaahg." said Frank.

Frank was a bird, a majestic, magical Thunderbird, mind you, but still a bird, so his attempts at English were negligible.

"Actually, I was wondering," said Tina appearing out of nowhere, "How is Frank supposed to know how to get to Arizona? Thunderbirds are not migratory and Frank can't read maps."

"Tina?" Newt said his confusion doubling, "What the heck is going on?"

"You know what," Tina said, ignoring Newt's confusion, "I'll just take Frank to Arizona myself."

She said then jumped on the back of Frank the mighty Thunderbird and rode off into the sunset. (The correct direction this time.)

"What has happened with my life?" Newt muttered to himself.


End file.
